


Our first Christmas as a family

by donnawanderedoff



Category: The 100 (TV)
Genre: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Awkward Flirting, Awkwardness, Bonding, Christmas Fluff, Christmas Party, F/M, Family, Family Feels, Family Fluff, First Kiss, Flirting, Fluff, Fluff and Humor, Humor, Marcus being a dork and making sure that Bellamy and Octavia have the best Christmas ever, Playing in the Snow, Pre-Relationship, Snowball Fight, Thank god Abby is there to help him, also Marcus freaking out and panicking slightly, au kabby, building a snowman, children's Christmas party, dad!kane everybody
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-01-07
Updated: 2017-01-07
Packaged: 2018-09-11 03:38:36
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 6,151
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8952382
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/donnawanderedoff/pseuds/donnawanderedoff
Summary: This is my contribution for day 4 of the Kabby Christmas holiday week. The point of today was to include other people in Abby's and Marcus' lives, aka 'the kids'. And I also couldn't resist and included Vera as well. I’m going to be honest with you all, I cried while writing this but it were happy tears, I promise! You all wanted to wrecked with family feels? Brace yourselves because you will feel things. This story is AU and all you need to know is that Marcus adopted Octavia and Bellamy almost a year ago and this is their first Christmas together. Wanting to give them something special, he decides to throw a little Christmas party inviting a bunch of their classmates. Only, having a house filled with seven and ten-year-olds is more exhausting than he initially expected. Luckily Abby is there for some moral support





	1. Chapter 1

**Author's Note:**

> This is my contribution for day 4 of the Kabby Christmas holiday week. The point of today was to include other people in Abby's and Marcus' lives, aka 'the kids'. And I also couldn't resist and included Vera as well. 
> 
> I’m going to be honest with you all, I cried while writing this but it were happy tears, I promise! You all wanted to wrecked with family feels? Brace yourselves because you will feel things. 
> 
> This story is AU and all you need to know is that Marcus adopted Octavia and Bellamy almost a year ago and this is their first Christmas together. Wanting to give them something special, he decides to throw a little Christmas party inviting a bunch of their classmates. Only, having a house filled with seven and ten-year-olds is more exhausting than he initially expected. Luckily Abby is there for some moral support

Marcus has no idea why he ever thought that hosting a Christmas party at his house for a bunch of Octavia’s and Bellamy’s classmates was a good idea. If he could, he’d like to go back in time and punch his past-self in the face for ever coming up with the plan. After all, he had thought, how difficult could organizing a party for a couple of seven and ten-year-old be? He had served in the army and was a detective for _god sakes_ , surely he could handle a children’s party. When he had invited his colleague Indra and her little niece Lexa to the party, she had questioned his sanity, but feeling confident in his abilities, Marcus had brushed it off. Now, however, he was beginning to realize just how nerve-wracking organizing a party for sixteen children was.  

The party was in a couple of hours and Marcus still needed to go to the store and buy all of the ingredients for the Christmas cookies and bake them. Plus, this party had to be a success. After everything Bellamy and Octavia had been through, they deserved something special. Especially since this was their first Christmas together as a family. Marcus still can’t believe that it’s already been almost a year since he had adopted the Blake siblings. He still remembers receiving the call for a homicide that early morning of January the 6th. The only thing dispatch had told him was the victim’s name, Aurora Blake and that she’d been shot. So he and Indra had taken the call, only to stumble upon Aurora’s two children locked up in a closet during their inspection of the crime scene. It had taken Marcus some time to make Bellamy drop the baseball bat or getting the two to trust him enough to leave the closet. Child service had been called and had taken the children away. During the investigation, he had kept track of the children and when it became clear that the siblings would be separated, Marcus had stepped in and adopted them. He couldn’t watch them go through the foster system, so he had filed all the paperwork and he became their legal guardian.

Things hadn’t been easy in the beginning, especially with Bellamy. Being the older one of the two, he had always been there to protect his little sister. He had come in contact with some pretty bad men, causing him to grow up more quickly than a boy his age ever should. So his distrust of Marcus had been expected and it had taken him some time to win Bellamy over, but bit by bit Marcus had been able to gain his trust. The day both Octavia and Bellamy had come home from school with a card for Father’s day had been one of the happiest days of his life. Those cards were still on the fridge. So Marcus just had to make sure that this party was a success. The fact that he also might want to impress a certain doctor whose daughter was in the same class as Octavia didn’t help either. Every time he’s in the same room as Abby Griffin, he feels like a sixteen-year-old who has a crush on the prettiest girl in school. Not only was she beautiful, Abby was also kind, patient, loving and both Octavia and later on Bellamy adored her.

Marcus remembers going to the school to enroll the children, only to nearly crash his car into hers because he was running late. So you could say that their first meeting got off to a rocky start, but after stammering an apology and explaining the situation, she’d been most accommodating, assuring him that he ever needed help or advice, he could always call her. Octavia regularly went over to Abby’s place since she got along nicely with her daughter Clarke. The friendship between those two was something Abby could only applaud because Octavia together with Raven, another new girl, had been able to make the girl open up after her father’s death which had taken place almost two years before.

Glancing at the clock, Marcus lets out a curse when he notices how late it already is. Indra, thankfully, had been kind enough to take Bellamy and Octavia ice skating so he’d be free to get everything and make sure things were ready on time. Taking another sip from his mug of coffee, Marcus goes over his checklist one last time, making sure that he’d written everything down that still needed to be done. The decorating had already been taken care if, he and the kids had done so last night. But he still has to buy all of the ingredients for the cookies and brownies, Octavia had insisted that he’d make, declaring that they were so good that she just had to share them with her friends. He also had to buy sandwiches, napkins and some soft drinks and candy canes. Putting his now empty mug in the sink, he puts on his jacket and collects his phone and car keys.

* * *

 Staring at all the different shapes for cookies, Marcus feels himself starting to panic. _Which ones was he supposed to buy? And why were there so many?_ He quickly types in Abby’s number, remembering that she had to work today, but praying that she’d pick up. As he hears her answer the call, he doesn’t give her the time to say something.

“Please help me”, he blurts out.

“Marcus? What’s wrong? Did something happen? Something with the children?”, Abby asks, sounding worried.

“No, no, nothing like that. It’s just – I’m at the store and I’m staring at, at least twenty different types of figures for Christmas cookies. How am I supposed to pick? And how many figures should I buy?”, he babbles and he hears her letting out a little huff of laughter at his response.  

“Okay, first of all, take a deep breath Marcus, you’ll be fine. Also, please don’t ever start a conversation like that again, you scared me for a second”, she admonishes him gently, causing him to wince for worrying her and mutter an apology.  

“As for the cookies. I’d say go for the traditional ones, you know snowmen, trees, that sort of thing. Do either Bellamy or Octavia like anything in particular?”, she presses.

Marcus thinks for a second, “Well, Octavia loves playing outside so perhaps snowmen and snowflakes for her and I know that Bellamy likes candy and nature, so perhaps candy cane figures and trees for him?”

“Sounds like an excellent plan. You were planning on making your famous brownies as well weren’t you?”, Abby asks, her tone taking on a teasing note when she mentions the brownies, making him blush even though she can’t even see him.

“I am”, he admits.

“Well, I think that those four packets of figures should be enough. How many kids are coming again?”

“Well, Octavia, Bellamy, Clarke, Raven, Finn, Monty, Jasper, Lexa, Lincoln, Wells, John, Emori, Harper, Nathan, Zoe, and Bryan”, he counts, getting a bit overwhelmed when he thinks of his house filled with sixteen children.

Abby must notice the slight panic is his tone.  “Do you need any help with the preparations? I might not be as good at baking as you are, but I can make some very tasty sandwiches”, she proposes and Marcus immediately feels a weight being lifted from his shoulder at the prospect of getting some help.

“If you don't mind”, he replies, not wanting to sound overeager.

“I wouldn’t have suggested it otherwise Marcus”, Abby laughs, “My shift ends in about half an hour. I can drop by afterward? Clarke won’t mind staying a bit longer at my mother’s. Did I mention that she got a dog? Clarke has been pestering me to get one too”, Abby sighs, but he can hear the amusement in her voice.

“You might have mentioned it, yes”, he chuckles, remembering the picture Abby had sent him of Clarke hugging an adorable puppy, a broad smile on the girl’s face. “And that would be great. I just need to gather some ingredients, but I nearly got everything”

“Great. I’ll meet you in about an hour at your place, then”, she replies.

“Okay, thanks, Abby”

“No problem Marcus. I’m only dropping by earlier so I can finally taste one of those brownies Octavia can’t stop talking about”, she teases.

“Yes, well, if you’re good, I might give you two”, he retorts, his voice coming out more breathless and flirtatious than he had originally planned.

Marcus can’t be sure, but he thinks that he can hear her breath catch in her throat, but after a second, Abby’s giggle fills his ear, “Ooh, I can be good. Trust me”, she promises before ending the call, leaving Marcus standing in front of cookie figures, staring at his phone with wide eyes,  his mouth suddenly feeling dry. Shaking his head, he picks the packets and places them in his shopping cart.

* * *

 

He has just placed the last of the brownies in the oven when the doorbell rings. Quickly stopping in front of the mirror in the hallway, making sure that he looks at least a bit presentable, Marcus takes a deep breath before opening the door, revealing a smiling Abby.

She has changed out of her scrubs and into a simple pair of jeans, with a dark blue blouse, a jacket, she’s wearing a scarf and her hair falls around her shoulders in loose curls. Marcus knows that it sounds sappy, but to him, she’s the most beautiful woman he has even seen.

“Hi”, he manages to stammer after a couple of seconds, “Please come in.”

“Hi. Thanks”, Abby responds, entering his house and handing him her jacket when he holds out his hand. As he turns his back to her, she lets out a giggle. When he throws her a confused look, she only laughs louder

“Is there something amusing?”, he frowns.

“Did you already bake some things?”, Abby gasps between laughter.

“I did. How did you know?”

“Because you’ve got some flower in your hair at the back of your head. How did you even manage to get it there?”, she ponders, reaching out to ruffle his hair.

At the feeling of her hand is his hair, his breath catches in his throat and Marcus gives her a bashful look “I honestly have no idea”

Abby merely looks at him, slowly pulling her hand back before averting her eyes with a small smile. He stares at her for a heartbeat, but then clears his throat, “Right, Let’s go into the kitchen”, and he leads the way.

When Abby sees the state of the kitchen and the amount of food he bought, she can’t help but laugh again. “Marcus did you by any chance buy all of the cookie dough and sandwiches in the entire shop? Just for how many people are going to make food?”, she teases, a broad smile on her lips.

Feeling nervous, he rubs his neck, “You think it’s too much? I just didn’t really know how much to get. I’m not that used with throwing children’s parties”, he whispers.

Realizing that her words might have sounded like criticism, Abby quickly places a hand on his arm, “I was only teasing you Marcus. I didn’t mean any harm besides, I know a lot of these kids and they can eat a lot. Now where are those sandwiches, you needed my help with?”

Relieved, Marcus gestures to a corner of the counter,”I’ll get out the spreads”

“Thanks”, she replies as she makes her way over.  

As Abby starts with the sandwiches, Marcus begins to make the batter for the cookies. They work in silence, the only sounds are those of them working and the radio playing in the background, but it’s a comfortable one. It’s one of the things Marcus likes the most about Abby, there’s no need for futile chatter.

After the batter’s finished and he starts on cutting the batter into different shapes using the figures, Marcus can’t help but steal quick glances at Abby, marveling at how at ease she looks in his kitchen or how she’s softly humming along to a song on the radio. He’s so focused on watching her making sandwiches that he misses the alarm on his oven going off, indicating that the brownies are finished

“Marcus? _Marcus?_ ”

Realizing that his name is being called, he snaps his attention to Abby’s face, who’s looking at him with a bemused look

“Yes?”

“Your oven is making noises”, she laughs, shaking her head slightly.

“Oh”, he mutters, wiping his hands on the apron he’s wearing, “That’ll be the brownies”, he says, not missing how her eyes start to twinkle at the mention of the brownies. Grabbing an oven mitten, he carefully takes the tray out of the oven, gingerly placing it on the counter, the smell of chocolate instantly filling the room.

“Those look and smell delicious Marcus”, Abby admits before reaching out, wanting to grab one, only to have her hand swatted away by the mitten.

“Oh no, you don’t. You’ve got to wait until they’ve cooled off Abby”, he admonishes her with a half-smirk.

At his rebuke she pouts, Abby Griffin actually _pouts_ and that looks just _does_ things to him, things that are wholly inappropriate

“But I’ve finished almost all of the sandwiches”, she sulks. 

Grinning at her behavior, Marcus shakes his head. “How about a deal? You finish those sandwiches and help me get all of the cookies on the platters and I’ll give you a brownie. And if you stay to help me decorate the cookies, I’ll give you another one and I might even slip you a cookie as well.”

“My my, two brownies and a cookie? You certainly know how to spoil a woman”, she teases, bumping her shoulder against his arm “But alright, I accept your deal”, she states before holding out a hand, which Marcus shakes with a laugh.  

In no time they manage to put all of the cookies on the different platters. Abby hands them one for one as Marcus places them in the oven. Being a man of his word, Marcus checks the brownies, making sure they’ve cooled off enough before handing Abby one.

“Here you go Abby”, he says, suddenly feeling very nervous. _What if she didn’t like them?_  

Eyes gleaming, Abby takes a bite and promptly closes her eyes with a hum, “oh my god, _Marcus_ ”, she sighs, and immediately inappropriate images of her moaning his name in a different setting flash through his mind, and he has to clench his fist in order to control himself and not to pull her close and ravish her. A sudden need to kiss her overcomes him, wanting to lick those crumbs of brownies of her lips.

"So,uh, you like them?"

Opening her eyes with a mischievous smile on her lips, Abby confesses “Like them? These are simply _delicious_. Octavia wasn’t lying when she said that these were the best brownies she has ever eaten.”

“She really said that?”, Marcus implores, feeling a bit proud of the fact that Octavia had been telling people stuff like that.

Abby gives him a soft smile, “She has. On several occasions. The girl adores you Marcus and so does Bellamy. You’ve done a great job with the both of them”

Feeling slightly flustered, he averts his gaze, “Well, those two make it easy for me. They’re wonderful children and it has been a pleasure to be given the opportunity to take care of them”  

Abby merely squeezes his hand before taking another bite of the brownie. “So, what’s next?”

Swallowing the lump his this throat, Marcus flashes her a grin, “Now we wait until the cookies are done and then we can decorate them”

“Okay”, Abby replies as she leans next to him against the counter.

“Could I perhaps have another brownie?”

“Abby!”

“ _Please?”_

“Fine”

* * *

They’re in the middle of decorating the cookies when the doorbell rings again, Marcus is momentarily confused, not expecting anyone until he glances at the clock and realizes that it’s already 4 o’clock.

“You expecting someone?”, Abby asks, finishing another snowflake cookie.

“Yeah, my mother. She’s dropping by earlier to make her _special_ hot chocolate. It’s a family recipe and it is delicious”, he answers, as he tries to find a towel to wipe his hands clean.

“Why don’t you finish those cookies and I’ll get the door”, Abby suggests, wiping her hands on a cloth and making her way towards the door

As Abby opens the door, she finally comes face to face with Vera Kane, Marcus has mentioned his mother on several occasions and she has seen pictures but she has never met the woman in person.

“Hi, I'm Abby, please come in. Marcus is in the kitchen busy with the cookies”, Abby explains, accepting Vera’s coat.

The older woman gives her a friendly smile, “Ah, you must be Clarke’s mother. Marcus has told me a lot about you”

Raises her eyebrows at that, Abby implores, “He has? And please, call me Abby, Mrs. Kane”

“Oh yes, he has and only if you call me Vera, dear”, she replies before making her way to the kitchen.

“Hi mom”, Marcus greets the woman, walking towards her and giving her a quick hug.

“Well, you two have been busy”, Vera remarks, her eyes twinkling as she takes in the state of the kitchen “Those cookies look very festive and they smell really great” 

Marcus opens his mouth to reply, only to get interrupted by his phone going off. Checking the caller ID, he notices that his boss. “Sorry, I have to take this”

His mother merely waves him off, “Don’t worry about it, Marcus. I’m sure Abby and I will get along besides, she can help me with the hot chocolate”

Abby gives an affirmative nod, "Yes, Marcus we'll be fine. Go take the call"

* * *

 

When Marcus finally finishes the call and re-enters the kitchen, his mother and Abby are having a pleasant conversation, laughing softly as Vera lets her taste the hot chocolate.

“Oh, this is good. I guess I now know where Marcus got his kitchen skills from. I just tried his brownies, which are _amazing_ ”, Abby gushes and Marcus feels his heart clench at her obvious appreciation of something he made.

“Oh, I know they are. It’s my recipe”, Vera in a conspiratorial whisper, making Abby giggle.

Marcus can’t help but roll his eyes at his mother’s behavior.

“Yes, yes. I know. I owe everything to you, mother”, he teases, dropping a tender kiss on his mother’s head before filling a mug of hot chocolate for himself and taking a seat next to Abby.

Vera can’t help but glance between her son and the woman she’d been hearing so much about for a couple of months now, taking in how comfortable they seem to be around each other.  

“Well, the chocolate milk is done. You just need to reheat it whenever the kids want some. So, I guess my job’s done here. I’ll get out of your hair”, she comments.

“You're free to stay if you want mom. Octavia and Bellamy will arrive any minute now and I’m positive they’ll be happy to see you”, Marcus is quick to reply.

“You sure?”

“Of course mom, you’re their grandmother after all”, he assures her.

“Okay then. I’d love to stay if you don’t mind, Abby?”, the older woman questions.

“Me? Why would I mind? Besides, I’ve got to leave, I still have to pick up Clarke from my mother’s and get some stuff from home. So, I guess I’ll see you both later?”, Abby inquiries, putting her mug down and getting up from the stool.

“Yes, dear. It was lovely meeting you”, Vera says as she gives the other woman a short hug?

“You too”, Abby replies before moving towards the hallway, Marcus not far behind. Just as he’s about to enter the hallway he stops and quickly turns back, grabbing a brownie and wrapping it in a napkin, deliberately ignoring his mother’s grin.  

Abby’s putting on her jacket and scarf when he appears next to her and hands her the brownie. When she gives him an amused look, he merely shrugs, “For on the way”

Chuckling, Abby accepts it and she turns to leave only to stop and face him again. Marcus looks at her confused, not knowing why turned back as she stares at him for a second before biting her lower lip and taking a step in his direction. Standing on her tip toes, she places a soft kiss on his cheek, enjoying the scratchy feeling of his beard against her lips before leaning back with a smile.

“Thanks for the brownies. I’ll see you later”, she whispers before leaving.

Marcus stands in his door, looking a bit befuddled, watching as she backs away from his driveway. He only closes the door when she has left the street, gingerly touching his cheek where her lips had touched him moments ago. As he enters the kitchen again, his mother is drinking some chocolate milk as well. She must have noticed the slightly dazed look on his face because she shoots him a knowing look.

“Don’t start mother”, he warns her.

Smirking behind her cup, Vera mutters, “I wouldn’t dream of it”

With a nod, Marcus starts to clean up the kitchen.

“She’s very pretty”, his mother can’t help but utter after a couple of minutes of silence.

“Mom”, Marcus warns her again.

“I’m just saying, she’s pretty”, Vera shrugs.

"Yes", he replies with a bemused smile, "Yes she is"

 


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I am so sorry for the wait dears! Hope it's worth it!
> 
> This chapter is filled with fun in the snow, lots of family feels, some more flirting and perhaps ....a kiss??

“What do you guys want to do first? Build a snowman or watch a movie?”, Marcus asks, looking down at 16 eager children. When they all start to shout their preference, he winces at the noise and quickly raises his hand until they quiet down.

“Let’s try this again. Those who want to build a snowman raise your hands please”, he repeats, chuckling when everyone’s hand shoots into the air immediately.

“Snowman it is then. Now before we go out, I want everyone to put on their jackets, scarves, hats and mittens”, he calls out when the kids rush out of the room and into the hallway to get their stuff.

With a smile and a shake of his head, Marcus moves into the kitchen where Abby throws him an amused look before returning to her conversation with Vera.

“You know, for detective you’re not being very subtle”, Indra remarks casually as she stops next to him.  

Marcus turns his head towards her, “I have no idea what you’re talking about”

At his obvious deflection, Indra snorts into her cup of hot chocolate, “Of course you don’t mister heart eyes”

Feeling slightly flustered by the nickname, Marcus throws her a bewildered look but Indra merely raises her eyebrows, giving him her trademark no-nonsense stare.

Before he has to time to come up with a witty retort the kids enter the kitchen, looking ecstatic and eager to head outside

“Can we go outside now?”, Octavia exclaims, nearly jumping up and down with excitement and the sight honestly, warms his heart.

“Are all your coats zipped? Hats, scarves and mittens on?”, he asks, receiving 16 affirmative nods.

“Okay then, Bellamy why don’t you lead the others to the yard?”, Marcus proposes, to which the boy gives him a serious nod and ushers everyone outside, telling them to be careful on the steps because they might be slippery.

Watching Bellamy guide his friends outside, and making sure nobody falls down the stairs, fills him with parental pride.

“Well, I’ll leave you to it. My shift starts in 20 min. I’ll pick Lexa up tomorrow?”, Indra states, pulling him out of his reverie.

Turning his attention back to his partner, Marcus nods, “Yeah. Don’t drop by too early though, I’m pretty sure that they’re going to be knackered by the end of the evening”

“Okay, thanks. Well, you have fun and _behave_ ”, she replies with a wink before walking over to Abby and Vera and saying goodbye to the both of them.

Stepping outside after putting on his coat and a pair of gloves, Marcus takes a deep breath, enjoying the coldness. Opening his eyes and taking in the yard, he couldn’t have wished for better weather, the sun’s already slowly going down, but it’s still light enough for the kids to have some fun.

“They seem to be enjoying themselves”; Abby comments, the snow crunching beneath her feet as she stops next to him.

Observing the kids running around, throwing snow at each other while screaming with laughter, Marcus smiles, “They are”

“Dad! Dad, can you help us with the snowman?”, Octavia begs, sounding slightly breathless from running as she tugs at his hand.

“Of course I can”, he replies, throwing Abby an apologetic smile, but she just shakes her head and gestures him to go, so he lets Octavia drag him towards the rest of the group.

Coming to a halt, the rest of the kids gather around him, giving him all expectant looks.

“Okay, who can tell me how to build a snowman?”, Marcus asks.

“You have to start with the bottom ball because that’s the largest one”, Bellamy points out.

Nodding at the boy with a smile, he poses the next question, “And then?”

“The ball for the body”, Raven pipes up.

“Exactly Raven! And you end with the smallest ball that you can use for the head. I’ve got an idea. How about you form three groups and each group makes a ball? That way we can make one massive snowman?”, Marcus proposes, which is met by a chorus of cheers and the kids swiftly form groups start to scoop up snow and pressing it together. Some of them are pushing piles together while others roll snowballs until they’re bigger.

Marcus takes a step back and watches them work and laugh, smirking when an occasional snowball is thrown, and the sight warms his heart.

It doesn’t take long before each group has made their snowball and Marcus walks towards Clarke’s group who made the bottom ball. They’ve done a great job, heaping up snow until it reached just above their waists and patting it down so the shape appeared more round.  

“Very nice job girls”, he praises, receiving five beaming smiles in response and Lexa even lifts her hand so he can high five her, which he does with a chuckle.

“Now for the more difficult part, we’ll have to stack the other two balls on top of this one without damaging them. Jasper, Monty, why don’t you two roll the second snowball over so I can put on top of this one?”, Marcus suggests, addressing the two boys with a smile.

After stacking the ball on the bottom one, he gestures Nathan and Bryan to bring him the head, which he carefully places on top and the snowman is almost as tall as him.

“So what do you guys think?”

Octavia smiles widely as she reaches out and pats away some snow and circles the snowman, admiring it.

“I love it”, she proudly declares and the others nod in agreement.

“Great”, Marcus states, as he steps back to take a closer look, “It seems to be missing something, don’t you think?”

“Eyes and a nose, mister Kane”, Harper blurts out.

“And arms”, Wells adds.

“And a mouth”, Zoe declares.

“What about a hat?”, Lincoln suggests.

Giving them all a warm smile, Marcus shakes his head, “Of course, how could I have forgotten something like that?”, he sighs, rolling his eyes in a dramatic manner, causing them all to giggle.

“This might be helpful?”, Abby points out.

At the sound of her voice, Marcus turns his head and watches her approach them with several bags in her hands. They’re all filled with stuff that could be used to decorate the snowman.

“Ah, yes, thank you Abby”, Marcus replies, accepting the bags with a smile, “Why don’t you guys look inside these bags and decide what you want to use”.

The kids begin to search the bags and before long the snowman has a carrot for a nose, two buttons for eyes, two twigs as arms, his mouth is made out of little rocks and he has an old hat on his head.  

“There! All done! Now we have to name it, right dad?” Bellamy exclaims, turning towards him with an enthusiastic smile and Marcus grins right back.

“Yes. Any ideas?”

The kids all glance at each other, murmuring some ideas until Emori steps forward, "How about Roan? King Roan, ruler of the snow?" 

They all stare at her for a couple of seconds,  until Murphy wraps his arm around Emori's shoulders, "Cool name"

"Well, that's settled then. Let's all bow down to our snowman, King Roan", Marcus announces in an official manner, as he kneels down in the snow, tugging at Abby's hand. 

With a chuckle, Abby kneels down too, "Oh, praise thee, King Roan, ruler of the snow and ice", she pledges, in a completely serious voice. Marcus glances at her in surprise but she just winks back.

Bellamy, Octavia and Clarke roll their eyes at their parents' behavior but they still giggle and kneel down in the snow just as the rest of their friends. 

They all get up after a couple of seconds, Marcus and Abby gathering the things they didn’t use to decorate King Roan while the kids move to play with the snow.

“I’m just going to put these bags inside”, Marcus states and Abby gives him a nod before turning her attention to her daughter, who’s talking to Raven, Octavia, Lexa, Zoe and Harper.

“Mom?”, Clarke calls out and Abby to make her way over.

“Something wrong darling?”

“Oh no, everything’s okay. We were just talking about snow angels and I told them that we made some last year”, Clarke clarifies.

“And you want me to make one?”, Abby guesses, chuckling when the girls give her eager smiles.

“Alright then. Well, first off, we have to make sure that we have enough room for our angels”, she explains, “So how about we move more to the right, we should have plenty of space there.”

“Now for the angel making, all you need to do is carefully sit down so that you don’t disturb the snow too much, like this”, Abby says before sitting down in the powdery substance, making sure not to crush too much snow.

“Next, you’re going to lie down and then you’re going to move your arms and legs like this”, showing the girls how to move their limbs.

“The most difficult part is to get up without messing up your angel. It may take you a couple of tries, but that’s okay”, she assures them while getting up.

Taking a step back, Abby inspects her angel, “Not too bad. Why don’t you girls try next?”, she proposes and watches with a smile how the girls let themselves fall in the snow before moving their arms and legs.

“Like this Mrs. Griffin?”, Raven asks.

“Yes, just like that Raven. All your angels are looking great”, she gushes, eliciting giggles from the girls.

“Yours is pretty amazing too”, Marcus whispers, startling her a bit as Abby whips her head around, “I’m sorry I didn’t mean to startle you”, he apologizes.

“It’s okay”, she replies, bumping her shoulder against his arm as they exchange smiles. 

“Kids, the hot chocolate is ready. Why don’t you come in for a while and warm up?”, Vera announces from the back door, which is greeted by the cheers of everyone, including Marcus and Abby.

“Ooh, can we have a brownie too?”, Octavia enthusiastically exclaims, “Pretty please!!”, she pleads, causing Marcus to chuckle.

“Yes, O. you can have a brownie”, he agrees.

Octavia whoops, “Come on guys, let’s go inside. My dad makes the best brownies you’ll ever eat”, she promises before rushing towards the house, the rest of the kids quickly following.

“Careful on those stairs, kids”, Marcus calls out.

“Does this mean that I can have another brownie as well”, Abby whispers softly, sounding hopeful.

“Mmm, I don’t know. As I recall you’ve already had several of them today”,  he teases, smirking when Abby pouts at his response.

“Aw, come on Marcus. I’ll stay behind when the kids have gone home and help you clean up if I can have another one”, she pleads, taking another step in his direction and entering his personal space.

Gasping slightly at her close proximity, Marcus only manages to give her a weak nod. At her responding smile, he can feel his heart soar. He continues to look down at her with a soft look in his eyes, so focused on her eyes that the snowball comes as a complete shock. Spluttering through a mouthful of snow, Marcus stares at her dumbfounded, not believing what just happened. Abby, however, is giggling exuberantly, her eyes are twinkling with amusement.

“I’m sorry Marcus, but I just had to do it”, she laughs, not sounding sorry at all.

“Oh really?”, he raises an eyebrow while squatting down and scooping up some snow, making Abby’s laughter to abruptly stop and her eyes to widen.

“You do realize that I can’t let that go unpunished? You just attacked a detective Abby”, he warns her.

Abby lifts her hands in surrender, taking several steps backward, “Now Marcus, please. Don’t do anything ra-”, she cuts herself off with a loud squeal as a snowball lands right on her shoulder and the coldness seeps through her jacket.

She lets out a shocked gasp and throws him an incredulous stare. Marcus simply stares back with a grin, wiggling his eyebrows. Narrowing her eyes, Abby bends down and gathers a handful of snow.

“Abby, I don’t think th-”

_Splash_

The snow hits him right in the chest and with a laugh, Abby turns around and starts to run away.

“Catch me if you can Marcus”, she calls out behind her as her laughter rings in the air.

Marcus stares dumbfounded at her retreating form, not fully understanding what just has happened, before a delighted smile blooms on his face and he takes off after her.

“I feel like I should warn you that I’ve got pretty decent aim”, he shouts.

“So have I”, Abby quips back while throwing another snowball which he manages to dodge.

“You sure about that?”, he grins as he presses some snow together.

“Bring it on, detective”, she teases while ducking behind a tree and avoiding getting hit with a snowball.

“Oh, I will”, Marcus mutters under his breath, determined to hit her at least once, otherwise he’ll _never_ hear the end of it. Especially if Indra ever found out.  

Marcus decides to sneak up on her, so using all of his detective skills, he manages to get to the tree and bushes Abby has hidden behind without getting spotted. Inwardly congratulating himself for this act, he jumps behind the bushes, snowball ready, only to collide with Abby and they both stumble to the ground.

He falls right on top of her with a loud _swoosh,_ knocking the air out of her. Marcus quickly rolls over and Abby ends up sprawled across his chest, their legs tangled and breathing erratic. They both have snow in their hair and their cheeks are flushed both by the coldness and their exertion. With a chuckle, Marcus reaches out and brushes some snow from her hair, breath hitching in his throat as Abby catches his hand with one of her own.

Ever so slowly Abby lowers her lips to his, reveling at the slight scratchiness of his beard against her skin in combination with the coolness of his lips. As Marcus opens his mouth, she eagerly deepens the kiss, moaning at the sensation of his tongue against hers. Tangling her hands into his hair, she tilts his head slightly to get a better angle, causing Marcus to moan and grip her waist, pulling her closer.

They continue to kiss until the coldness begins to seep into their bodies. Reluctantly pulling away, they gaze at each other, soft smiles on both of their faces. 

"You wanna go and drink some hot chocolate?", Marcus whispers, running his hands up and down her arms. 

"I'd like that", Abby replies as she presses a quick peck on his lips before getting up and extending a hand so he can stand up as well. 

Linking arms, they start to make their way to the house.

"I still get a brownie right?", she blurts out after a couple of seconds.

Throwing back his head in laughter, he shakes his head, "You're getting as many brownies as you could possibly want, for as long as you want Abby" 

"You promise?"

"Yes. Yes, I promise"

**Author's Note:**

> Comments and/or kudos are much appreciated


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